Hemant Mehta's Blog, page 1707

Nebraska Just Repealed the Death Penalty Thanks to Its Atheist State Senator

You may have heard that Nebraska’s legislature just voted to repeal the death penalty. Governor Pete Ricketts threatened to keep it in place, but 30 senators (of the 49 total) were needed to override the veto.

They got exactly 30 votes.

As the Omaha World-Herald says, this represents a “crowning achievement” for State Senator Ernie Chambers (below). He’s the one who introduced the bill in January — something he did unsuccessfully 37 times before.

I feel it’s worth pointing out — since it’s not s...

Atheist Minister May Face “Review” by United Church of Canada Leaders Who See Her as a Heretic

Gretta Vosper is a reverend for the United Church of Canada… even though she doesn’t believe in God. Maybe you think that’s controversial — or hypocritical — but the UCC has long ordained women and LGBT individuals. So it’s not completely out of line to have an atheist minister.

But her position is now in jeopardy.

Earlier this year, following the Charlie Hebdo attacks, the church posted a prayer on its website that included these lines:

Gracious God,
By the light of faith,
lead us to seek comfo...

The Problem with the #CharlieCharlieChallenge

Earlier this week, a really dumb idea became ridiculously popular.

Here’s how the “Charlie Charlie Challenge” works: You get some paper and make a grid with the words “Yes” and “No.” You put pencils on the axes, one atop of another, so they balance. Then you ask Charlie — a supposed Mexican demon with a very not-Mexican name — any question you want.

If the top pencil moves, it means Charlie is answering your question…

We know how this works.

When you’re really close to the paper, the slightest mo...

Marco Rubio: LGBT Equality Would Lead to a “Real and Present Danger” for Religion

After decades of vicious attacks on the moral character, mental health, and legal rights of LGBT people, members of the Christian Right find themselves in the position of contemplating a world in which people don’t approve of their views. And it’s terribly discomforting.

Senator Marco Rubio expressed his deep concern over this impending crisis in an interview with David Brody of Christian Broadcasting News.

We are at the water’s edge of the argument that mainstream Christian teaching is hate sp...

“Duggar” is Now a Verb

Courtesy of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution‘s Mike Luckovich:

To sexually abuse innocent victims while trumpeting your moral superiority.

Who knew all those Catholic priests were just Duggars in disguise…?

The only qualm I have about the definition is that it’s linked to so many other kids in that family (including the victims) who did nothing wrong.

Anyway, seems appropriate to post this on a day when Rick Santorum is jumping into the Presidential race.

(via Joe. My. God.)

Mrs. Betty Bowers Explains the Differences Between Conservative Christians and ISIS

Mrs. Betty Bowers, America’s Best Christian, explains to the folks at ISIS that they all have plenty in common with each other.

For example, they’re both pro-life… in the sense that they’re both “pros at controlling the lives of others.”

You see, we use religious freedom just like you do. Only you kill gay teens directly. We’re more civilized. We shame them into suicide — trust me, if conservative Christians could get away with throwing gays off buildings, it really would be raining men in Sin...

After Orthodox Church Leader Joins Russian Facebook, He’s Greeted by Frustrated Critics

When President Obama joined Twitter last week under the @POTUS handle, he became the fastest person yet to reach a million followers. He also received a ton of racist messages. He should’ve seen that coming.

The Russian Orthodox Church’s Patriarch Kirill followed a similar path. The Church leader joined the nation’s Facebook clone Vkontakte (“VK”) a few days ago… and as soon as his page went up, critics of the religion (and plenty of trolls) began questioning his beliefs and stances, forcing C...

Hey, Ray Comfort: Josh Duggar Accepted Christ When He Was Seven Years Old

Remember the other day when Ray Comfort defended Josh Duggar by saying he just wasn’t a real Christian when he molested those little girls?

Standing by my friend Josh Duggar, as a brother in Christ. This was in his BC [Before Christ] days. Such were some of us.

We can finally say that Ray Comfort is full of shit.

(I’m just kidding. We’ve said that for a long time.)

On Josh and Anna Duggar‘s website, there’s a page full of their biographies, and right up at the top is this line:

Josh was raised in...

Companies Pull Ads from TLC’s 19 Kids and Counting Following Duggar Child Molestation Scandal

Companies are beginning their exodus from TLC’s 19 Kids and Counting in the wake of the Josh Duggar child molestation scandal.

The Washington Post‘s J. Freedom du Lac has a roundup of those pulling their advertising from the show:

Payless ShoeSource and Choice Hotels follow General Mills, which pulled its ads last week. Walgreens is considering doing the same.

Right now, TLC isn’t airing episodes of the show. But at this rate they won’t be able to bring it back even if the scandal dies down. The...

Clemson’s Head Football Coach Will Accept Award from Anti-Gay Christian Group

We’ve known for a while now that Clemson University head football coach Dabo Swinney is a Christian who proselytizes on the job. His players have had baptisms on the field with staff participation. Swinney hired a team chaplain. He sent the entire team to a Fellowship of Christian Athletes breakfast event in 2011. He scheduled devotionals for them.

It’s all illegal. And players who aren’t Christian were coerced — whether Swinney admits it or not — to participate lest they get on the Coach’s ba...